Charter schools vary from state to state, not only because the individual charters set out unique mission and goal statements, but also because state charter laws, which significantly influence the development of charter schools, also vary. The laws cover seven basic policy and legal areas:

• Charter development: who may propose a charter, how charters are granted, the number of charter schools allowed, and related issues.
  
  
• School status: how the school is legally defined and related governance, operations, and liability issues.
  
  
• Fiscal: the level and types of funding provided and the amount of fiscal independence and autonomy.
  
  
• Students: how schools are to address admissions, non-discrimination, racial/ethnic balance, discipline, and special education.
  
  
• Staffing and Labor Relations: whether the school may act as an employer, which labor relations laws apply, and other staff rights and privileges.
  
  
• Instruction: the degree of control a charter school has over the development of its instructional goals and practices.
  
  
• Accountability: whether the charter serves as a performance-based contract, how assessment methods are selected, and charter revocation and renewal issues.
  
  

For futher information, see the Center for Education Reform's detailed ranking of state charter laws.

The Education Commission of the States' also provides a database of State Policies for Charter Schools where users can create comparisons of specific types of state policies for charter schools across several states and view predetermined reports on state policies for charter schools.